Mosimane backs Qalinge for Bafana

This is according to former national team coach Pitso Mosimane, who praised Qalinge and Thembinkosi Lorch after Mamelodi Sundowns' 3-1 win over Pirates in midweek.

'Jingles' believes Bafana could do with Qalinge's explosive pace.

"I have never seen Qalinge and Lorch so revived, it's unbelievable," said the Sundowns mentor.

"They are showing, especially Qalinge, that he deserves a chance also for Bafana Bafana to come because we need the speed. But his time will come also.”

Mosimane feels Bucs are adopting an expansive game of football under new coach Milutin Sredojevic and his assistant Rhulani Mokwena. Mokwena served Mosimane with distinction before jumping ship in the off-season.

"If I look at the game of Arrows, they were expansive, they move," he said referring to the Buccaneers' 1-0 win over Golden Arrows in the last-16 of the Telkom Knockout last weekend. Qalinge got the goal in a man-of-the-match display in KwaMashu.

"Maybe [not] the Derby [against Kaizer Chiefs] because the Derby is always a lovely draw," he added of the goalless stalemate in October.

"But when they play Sundowns, when they play against Arrows, they are a little bit expansive. It's a different type of Pirates, let's give credit.

”You can see the game which was played, that is Champions League material. It's at that kind of level that you can see why these teams have stars on the top of their badges, because they play football."